Planting Creative seeds & Growing together..

Our Blog...

An ongoing series of informational entries .

Earth Moves, News, Reflections and Plans

December 23rd 2017

The Earth Moves team decided to mark the Winter Solstice with our meeting outdoors, we went first to the beautiful Medieval shrine to Saint Winifred and then on to a Neolithic site and finally discovered an altar to the Norse Goddess Freya. We lit some incense and gave thanks to the Pagans who made this shrine for us all to share.

The importance of ritual and the spirituality of the land was powerfully experienced. St Winifred's is infused with prayer and healing at the Neolithic site we felt our energy expand and a deep bittersweet connection was made with the sun who shone low in the sky,

We captured some of our ideas through drawing and responding with movement and sound in the Neolithic Caves.

January 11th 2017

Today we started work on our wonderful space and tarped the ground and audited and measured the space- great things are coming this way and we also offer our deep thanks to Steve at Manor Garden Centre, for his warm support in our project. We will post images of the greenhouse as it develops.

We are collecting a great gang of interested people. Please get in touch if you want to get involved.

January 17th 2017

This time of year we may be making plans, setting goals dreaming dreams. Some of us may still be hibernating. In the garden we may feel this is the time to enrich the soil. The roots are dormant and the seeds lie inert in the Earth. Some of them contain the potential in their little bodies to grow into massive Oak trees. This is their destiny, that can only be fulfilled if the conditions are tight. For us to grow into the greatest version of ourselves, we have to tend the gardens of our minds, removing doubt and fear. If the conditions are right the seeds will grow to adults and if they are lucky will be able to create seeds themselves. If we grow tofulfill our greatest potential .then we can plant seeds in others to do the same.

January 23rd 2017

A tree is an organism but it is also a metaphor. A native American saying suggests that, 'No tree would be so foolish as to have branches that fight each other.' We all know we need to plant trees and it is sad when we need to remove one. Carlos Castaneda said trees are the most illuminated and advanced beings of the plant world . He also said they feel hurt by man. We need trees for so many things, they are beautiful and healing . In Tai- Chi it is thought that practising under a tree brings healthy Chi into the body.

A tree was Growing in the Belisama Green House Temple. It grew well for the ten years the green houselay derelict, it grew till is smashed the panes on the roof, reaching for the sky. It was Sycamore tree. At one point its flying whirling seeds must have flew in through a broken pain and took root. Unfortunately we had to cut it down this week . We had no choice, we had to do it to save the greenhouse and make way for the other plants that will live there.

Sometimes a sacrifice needs to be made. Like some of our most nurtured ideas of who we are, need to be removed, to let more life enhancing versions of ourselves come through. We prayed for its soul and have kept its branches to make an elaborate entrance to the space in its honour.

February 13th 2017

Well, we've been pretty busy since the start of February, which is Imbolc- it marks the point of heading toward Spring. At the greenhouse temple we started by burning away the dried dead remnants of last year's growth and continuing to prepare the space. We also did some mindfulness meditation in the space to help us ground ourselves- back at the house and over the next meeting we planted the first of our seeds and worked hard on the business side of things. we did a lot on finalising the financial details of the business plan and marketing plan and after a great deal of hard work by the team we are very optimistic about the future because it really feels now like things are starting to take off. Roll on Spring!

February 21st 2017

This week we had the chance to meet Labour Councillor Tom Usher who came to see our progress on the Greenhouse project and discuss our ideas on Cooperative working styles and benefits to the local economy. For me it felt overwhelmingly positive to get the chance to really talk through what has been largely practical hands-on work or written documentation up to now to see the validity of our work in that context. It felt like a milestone - many thanks to Tom for the enthusiasm and support.

Feb 28th 2017

Our indoor seed factory is beginning to sprout. These sweet new babies will be nurtured in the house and then will be transformed to the Greenhouse, where they can grow into healthy plants which will eventually yield organic, courgettes, tomatoes, salads and much more!!!

Growing takes time, care and patience. Transformation into the best versions of ourselves takes time, care and patience too!

March 25th, 2017

Our fundraiser at the amazing 'Club Orientation' was really successful. The packed event was held at Northshore Troubador. The amazing and diverse acts had the audience engaged and participating.

We spend some of the generous donations offered by good folks there (including some splendidly dressed pirates), on new plants from our supporters at Manor including an Olive tree for our greenhouse. We also have the great offer of the volunteers Councilor Usher has organized for us coming to the greenhouse to turn the soil and level the flooring out.

April 9th 2017

Again - we just wanted to offer our gratitude to the good people who donated cash for our fundraiser at Club Orientation, The Green House is really coming together now with the plant stocks and compost we were able to buy. Giving is massively important to all human connections- and so is deep gratitude

April 20th2017

Today we met a kind Irish man who has donated many things to us for the greenhouse. These are things from house clearances which people have thrown away. He has given us tables, chairs, and a composter.

We are looking forward to working with all our volunteers on the 29th April and are happy to be working with Wirral Evolutions. This organisation provides activities and training for adults who have learning challenges. The are sending us a group of guys who love gardening, who are helping us to prepare the ground for all the seedlings we have been growing.

Toc has had excited to create a fair exchange for volunteers. We will produce a unit of currency called a 'Belisama'. These units will be used to exchange towards produce and courses that we offer. We have not agreed the specifics as yet.

We feel that time spent in the greenhouse will improve health and well-being and this is a reward in itself. However it is fair for those involved to receive for their time, education and food they have helped to grow.

April 23rd 2017

As a Buddhist meditator I am profoundly influenced by the first stanza of the Sayings of the Buddha (The Dharmapada) which is beautiful and ancient scripture of short pithy verses crammed with compassion and wisdom. In it he says,

"With our thoughts we create the world,All that we are arises from our thoughts"

I'll just let that sink in for a moment- essentially he is saying that all experience is led by mind and preceded by mind. This is unbelievably revolutionary in that it gives us the power to think about what kind of world we want and to achieve it. It allows us to influence our reality, not just with hollow wishes for a new TV or a holiday but to present compassion to the world and see it mirrored back to us. People of any other spiritual tradition may not agree but what harm can a positive mind do?

My current spiritual practice is mantra based and in Buddhist thinking reality manifest as transcendental sound is not just prayer for things but an instrument for purifying the universe. My usual Mantras are the ancient and traditional ones like "Om Mani Padme Hum" (which has profound poetic meaning in its original language and has helped change my life) but at the moment and in the run up to the election (or just for now) you may choose to join me in the simple mantras,

"Compassion is stronger than greed"

and

"Hope is stronger than fear"

Repeat them quietly to yourself many times while about your chores or on the bus or before sleep and see if it helps your reality- Much love Toc

April 25th 2017

When we connect with plants they can inform and transform us. Working in the Greenhouse is healing and consciousness changing, the nature of the work opens us up to the inter-dimensionality of the universe and helps the nature spirits to communicate with us.

True paganism is not about spells or dressing up in fancy dress costumes, it is about seeing the spirit in all things, connecting and respecting the land and feeling the ecstatic union to all there is.

Gardening feeds our bodies and souls and we all should do it, whether it be in a greenhouse or on a windowsill. Science shows us how just looking at plants heals us mentally, relieving stress and improving mood, but can also speed up healing in the body. This phenomenon has been empirically proven.

28th April 2017

We had our first Volunteer meet up day today. Creating a community of like minds has always been one of our objectives. A variety of interested individuals including families and young people from diverse groups turned up. Mindful Millennials sent a delegation of people. The wonderful Councillor Usher was instrumental in bringing some hard working young people to our inaugural volunteer day.

We worked the ground, planted and laughed together, we ate and talked and discussed our hopes for developing the project further and we made new connections to grow together. We fitted in some useful meditation and ritual and had a great success of a day, so thank you very very much to all who came to give their afternoon to us.

Images of these events will be added here for you to see and are already available on our Facebook Page.

May Ist 2017

Today we attended the Wirral Change Diversity event, where we had a stall and met a whole new range of amazing folks from Trade Union groups like Unite, Buddhist groups, People from Liverpool Pride and Wirral Change and various other volunteer groups who are keen to make further connections with us.

It was great to see the diverse performances from many traditions. A very well organised and uplifting day. Congratulations to all the team at Wirral Change.

14th May 2017

Great to have Wirral Evolutions partnering with us. The service users who have learning difficulties, are great workers and fun people and have helped us a lot. Wirral Evolutions staff get involved too and they are great people. Thank-you!

The oxygen-rich atmosphere of the greenhouse, together with the other healing powers of plants and physical activity, creates relaxation and euphoria. When we work together like this all types of people can find connections.

22nd May 2017

Fab to have a visit from our Hindu friends today. They came to the greenhouse to discuss ways of engaging with our projects.

We discussed sharing some Hindu ceremonies with the ever-growing greenhouse community.

We don't align with any religion at Earth Moves, but we love to share spiritual practice from all faiths.

27th May 2017

Fab mindful gardening session today. Gardening and plants have so many correspondences with the human psyche. Our mind will grow negative thoughts by default, just like a garden will become overrun by weeds if not tended. Mindfulness techniques can help to weed out negative, unproductive thoughts. Many spiritual teachers from all faiths have recognized teachings from plants and gardening.

Jesus said, 'Look at the Lillies they neither spin nor toil.'

The Buddha explained that when seeds are not rotten or damaged and when placed in well-prepared soil, and the sun and the rain add their life-giving gifts. Those seeds would come to grow and flourish. In the same way, any action performed with greed and with delusion, will see that action ripen, one will experience its deluded fruit, either in this life or the next.

When we plant ideological seeds at Earth Moves we try and do it with a cooperative, fair and ethical spirit, so these are the things that will manifest from our organisation.

25th May 2017

We always say how much better we feel when being in the Greenhouse, it gives the mind a focus even when we are feeling below par, (self-inflicted or otherwise)!

How much better would a meeting be in this type of oxygen rich environment? We have noticed that we can work harder physically: “Gardens are not made by singing 'Oh, how beautiful!' and sitting in the shade.”

― Rudyard Kipling,

Gardening brings benefits in the moment and in the long term. We have lost weight and gained muscle since we have started to resurrect the Greenhouse, we even look and feel younger! Let us know if you want to have an experience in the Greenhouse.

26th May 2017

So excited to be planning events in the Greenhouse. We are combining a drumming workshop and gardening with drum teacher Krista Shaeffer. We will also have a 'connecting to plants through drawing' workshop. We are making this event family friendly. Free Vegan healthy snacks! Get in touch if you want to come June 24th.

27th May 2017

The hard work is beginning to pay off! The courgettes are beginning to flower/fruit and we are are eating delicious salads grown at our Greenhouse! MMM! Organic and grown with love.

29th May 2017

Had a great meeting with Sharon from Wirral Change. She was very kind and encouraging about our projects. This organization has done so much to promote diversity in Wirral. We are very grateful for all her help and hope we can collaborate on projects. when we are more established.

2nd June 2017

We had such a laugh with staff and service users from Wirral Evolutions today! Gardening makes people happy and so does working together. We got so much done, we achieved lots!

10th June 2017

Great to see how great our organic lettuce is doing! We have given lots away to our volunteers and friends. Healthy food in exchange for healthy activity!

24th June 2017

Fabulous day in the Green House! Volunteers fun day! We hosted a drum workshop, with international drummer Krista Shaeffer. Connecting with plants through printing with artist Toc, who also did a meditation.

We all participated in a seed intention experiment with Ishtar. We each held Coriander seeds and sent them positive intentions and desires for strong healthy growth. We planted these next to a control group who were not loved or encouraged. We were inspired by some of the experiments in Lyn McTaggart's book 'The Feild ' and the famous 'Secret Life of Plants', as well as other similar books and studies. Watch this space to discover if the plants grow more powerfully who were loved, as our hypothesis suggests.

Peter explained the structure and ethos in our co-op and the notion of Belisama. Pete explained the symbolic and literal meanings of

Walter Cranes image (which we use as a logo) . Volunteers wrote their own personal and collective aims for the coop, by engaging with the spaces in the image.

We shared a healthy vegan lunch. Everyone had such a fabulous time, we all said how much better we felt.

July 8th

Fab drum and dance workshop at the Bluecoat hosted by Earth Moves. The event was a sellout and we had some great feed back!

July 11th

We enjoyed the METAL permaculture course, thanks for hosting such a great event and good luck with your community garden.

31/7/2017

So much research sites dance as a way to retard the aging process, psychologically and physically. Dance is a profound activity as well as being a fun way to relieve stress, lose weight, tone up and enhance cardiovascular health.

Dance is so fundamental to the human psyche. At Earth Moves we believe everyone can and should dance. Plants dance towards to the sun, a very slow and sensuous performance. they are an inspiration to dance.

1/8/2017

Earth Moves dance featured at 'One Wirral' festival, run by Mencap. It was a very uplifting event and very well organised. We performed on the main stage and led a workshop.

9//8/ 2017, We have arranged three more arts and well-being Workshops at the Greenhouse details arehere-

29/8/2017

We are shocked at the size of the pumpkins we are growing. It seems plants do love an atmosphere of healing and relaxation! We are amazed how much we have changed the space of the greenhouse, Volunteers have been crucial in the transformation in the greenhouse we have worked so well together in the heat.

Good news is we have all lost some weight and got great tans working in our shorts! More good news! The tomatoes, peppers, lettuce and the rest we have grown are delicious!

01/9/2017

Fabulous pilgrimage today in North Wales. We went to visit the chapel of Mary Magdelene, HolyWell, and Gop Hill, a strangely constructed mound, or cairn, built during the Neolithic period, on a hill overlooking Trelawnyd, Flintshire.

At Earth Moves we believe that sacred moments are important for many people. Studies show that a sense of the sacred improves individuals and communities.

We have a multi faith attitude to how people connect with spirit. We believe that nature can be used as a way of feeling the divine presence in those who are atheist or agnostic, Nature and sacred sights can invoke feelings of wonder, relaxation and openness.

2/9/2017

We had our for mental health women's forum at the greenhouse today. We discussed how we felt being involved in gardening together, was helping us deal with issues of depression and anxiety. We realised just how powerful a community that works together in nature, can be so psychologically healing.

4/9/2017

Fabulous day today! The New Brighton Pirate pubic arts team made a visited the Greenhouse and want to get involved at the Belisama community Green House. They are the makers of the Black Pearl on New Brighton beach and other cool public works. We will be doing a find objects workshop with them. The beach is a three-minute walk from the greenhouse, so we plan to make walks on the beach with volunteers to collect materials for the project. (mainly drift wood)

17/9/2017

Fabulous workshop in the healing environment of the Belisima Community Greenhouse. 'Women's Healing and Drumming Circle', was a great success and those who attended immersed themselves and contributed so much.

25/9/2017

We really enjoyed our art session in the greenhouse. We have so many giant sunflowers for inspiration we decided to do a study of them in paint. Ourselves and volunteers loved painting them. Doing art in the greenhouse is so relaxing. Painting plants is such a great way to understand and connect with them.

30/10/2017

This time of year has a sweet melancholy. We reap the harvest of what we have grown. The perennial plants are preparing to go asleep and the annuals are dying sharing their seeds. In Earth Moves case this is symbolized by the harvest of food which we have shared and the collaborative efforts of our selves. Creating a community os one of the most powerful and useful things we have managed to do. Working together and growing together. We are now in the process of raising funds so we can reach out to more people.

16/11/2017

Great meeting today planning next year! What we will grow and do. Planning is so important but we can still be spontaneous along the way!

1/12/2017

Great News! Earth Moves have won an award from Tesco bag scheme to help us repair the Greenhouse

Local people can vote for who gets the highest amount of the three winners, voting starts in January 2018, the stores are here:

2098 Bidston Moss CH43 7AA Extra

2714 HOYLAKE RD MORETN EXP CH46 6DG Express

6035 LISCARD EXP CH45 4JG Express

6393 MORETON CROSS EXP CH46 8TH Express

3100 Rock Ferry CH42 4QF Superstores

3100 ROCK FERRY METRO CH42 4QF Metro

6695 TRANMERE EXP CH42 9JG Express

5595 WALLASEY EXP CH44 4DF Express

6693 WALLASEY KING ST EXP CH44 0BZ Express

6/12/2017

Check out original designs and professionally made artworks and clothes for sale. HERE

6/01/2018

Our Tesco bag scheme opens today. We think our project is worth a vote, as we already have reached out to many people. With some investment and TLC we can help a lot more people. Earth Moves Community. Please consider voting for our project to win the highest award. We will benefit lots of local people and create a public and sheltered Greenspace. The greenhouse is massive and we have plans to link with organizations such as Women's Aid and other people that need some sunshine and green space all year round. Voting for us is also voting for environmental concerns and conservation of a heritage growing space.

13/01/2018

We made some great connections at the Transition Liverpool this week. We attended their workshop about Transitionntown values and how to apply them. Earthmoves share similar values. It is great to be with like minds and together we are stronger!

27/01/2018

We are delighted to announce that we have been awarded almost £10.000 by the National Lottery funding. With this money, we will provide educational and wellbeing courses and provided equipment for our members to use. We are so grateful, this will help our growing community so much!!!

26/2/2018

Great meeting with Earth Movers and Shakers. Brainstorming, making plans and devising a code of conduct to make the Greenhouse Belisima a safe space for everyone. Loads to look forward to as besides the FREE Women's Mental Wellness Event on 14th March there will be events and courses for

15/3/2018

Thanks to our lottery funding we can now provide free events to our growing and inclusive community. Our first event 'Women's Mental Wellness day, was a beautiful day, with beautiful souls, sharing, growing, meditating and laughing together. Thank you so much to the ethical and caring business. Lush, for sending us two amazing therapists and giving the women free treats and massages. Please visit our page of events here and get in touch to book: (limited places).